Oasis in Death
by Kuyeng13-The Heart Logos
Summary: Just as Madilim overcomes her own problems in Cantha tradgedy strikes her relatives in Elona. What's going on? A shady paragon courts Dawn and Pins' past is rearing its dark head. All that is certain is Night Falls.
1. Prologue: New Beginnings

**Disclaimer: I do not own GW, seriously, do you SEE Geil chasing Delius around while screaming how sexy he is? NO. Do you SEE Madilim clubbing Pins over the head with a bone skull? NO. Really…**

**:D It's finally the sequel!**

* * *

Madilim flipped open the letter, uncomfortably shifting the lace glove on her hand, a few weeks as the new Countess zu Lamig and she still wasn't used to the formal wear all Kurzicks wear. Honestly, how was one supposed to fight in the lace and layers of skirts? The others weren't helping much either; they'd gotten all too comfortable in poking fun at her. Why couldn't they just leave her alone?

She scans the contents, a frown quickly forming on her now Kurzick tattooed face.

_

* * *

_

Dear cousin,

_Tragedy has fallen upon us in Istan and Vabbi, my sister, your cousin, Valkyrie Lunaris has been killed. Please come, I know that you have become great within our homeland of Cantha and that you are needed there, but we too, the Kurzick branch within Elona needs you. We are about to fall. Night Falls upon us._

* * *

A call for help, in a different country, to help those who did not aide the ever continuing fight by adding their powers to the Kurzick armada?

It's a simple decision.

* * *

Madilim stretched, once again in Kurzick armor, she supposed she could do worse.

Pumpkin mumbled something to Wolfy. "We're going to be late if your cousins and siblings don't show up soon."

Orage shrugged, leaning against one of the sail posts. "We could always not go, I mean, who wants to burn in the sun when it's perfectly fine in the dark monstrous city of Kaineng?"

Dawn attempted to whack him over the head, he dodged and mumbled something along the lines of "I'm not Pins!" Mentioned assassin was bouncing around, eager to depart.

"COME ON! LETS MOVE ALREADY!" He yelled, hyper with the idea of going home to see his beloved country of sand and blistering heat. Inwardly Madilim shuddered, it sounded like hell to her, she rather agreed with Orage but if they stayed she'd have to do more paperwork and diplomatic things, it was better to just leave it to the new council of elders…all of which were too afraid to do anything against the Dark Queen.

She sighed and walked onto the ship, taking a last glance at the harbor.

"We'll have to leave without them if we want to make it in time." Her eyes flickered to the posts that held the large deck and stairwell from the city to the harbor up. "Let's just hope they can manage without us" she spoke, throwing her voice louder so that it would carry across the crowded port. She saw a flicker of steel and snorted.

As the ship departed a voice cut through the crowds.

"CATCH!" Madilim whipped around, her hair now tied at the base of her neck, stared at a small cloth bag being thrown by Ebony. She reached to catch it, as it landed in her palm she lost her footing slipping over the railings, she flinched waiting for impact when several hands jerked her back onto the ship. Still clutching the bag she looked around at her saviors.

Orage with his arms still around her 'tsked'.

_So clumsy…_

She elbowed him, smirking when he whined a bit. Everyone else relinquished their hold, Pumpkin chided her as he might one of his younger siblings, Dawn and the twins teased her about her coordination. Zefiros rolled his eyes.

"You've got a nice ass" Pins remarked, earning a hit from both Dawn and Orage.

She opened the bag and inside was a ribbon, black spider silk with words scribed along the gray boarder, a message repeating over and over.

_Dark Queen Madilim zu Lamig, beloved child of Grenth, Recalled to Life by the Black Storm, always and forever beloved_

She smiled and undid the simple tie at the base of her neck and pulling her hair up high in a pony tail, tying the ribbon around it then styling the tail into three separate parts, tying the tips of the ribbon into a weave around them. She allowed a small smile to play on her lips as she waved to her cousins on the dock, as well as the two queens in the shadows.

* * *

Kage looked at her elder sister from her perch on one of the cross beams under the upper section of the harbor.

"Well…what will you do now that our precious imoto is gone?" she mused to the Cold Empress.

"Well, I guess I'll make sure those elders don't loose their fear of the Triple Alliance" the Empress smirked, tiger eye flashing from behind her bangs. Her hair tied up in a bun with a purple iris and black ribbon. She fingered the skirt of her new silver Krytan armor. New armor for a new beginning, silvery white for cleansing.

Kage snickered, back in her imperial armor.

"I don't think anyone in the country will ever cross any of us again, and now that Madilim-chan is going off to Elona she'll probably cause a scare there too…" Kage snickered again. "Before we know it, we'll be infamous in every country" she sobered "we'll never have any worthy adversaries again!"

Colbadra laughed and petted Nami who was resting on an adjacent beam. "But sister, we must make sure that our own titles remain true." Her voice hinting at the chaos they'd soon cause.

"How true, and this is where I leave you for now, I'm back on duty and they'll attempt to have my head if I'm not there on time." Colbadra gave a dismissive wave.

"I too must leave, there has been news of warden patrols getting a little too close to home." Kage nodded and disappeared in a plume of purple tinted smoke. Colbadra patted Nami and pulled out her map, porting back to the temple of Grenth.

* * *

Madilim watched the sky, a new adventure, new faces.

_My dream is coming true…_

She turned towards the sun, watching its reflection in the waters; she was not so bold as to think that she could stare into its might and not be smited. She was traveling towards the land of light, the land of truth, and she'd grasp it with her cold dead hands.

**

* * *

**

TBC


	2. Truth: Welcome to Istan

**Disclaimer:** **Alright, I'm tired of writing this, it kills my self esteem, so this one disclaimer counts for ALLLLLLLLLLL my chapters in this story. I do NOT, I repeat DO NOT, own GUILD WARS.**

**Notes: The beginning parts in italics are not Dieary entries/flashbacks, they are musing from "anonymous" characters (feel free to guess) based of one word that may or may not foreshadow or be the central theme of the chapter.**

* * *

_In the world everyone is a liar. Truly there is only one select group of people who are brave enough to shoulder the massive burden of revealing the truth._

_There are the warriors who cover themselves in steel and iron to create monsters of themselves as to scare their enemies, hiding their insecurities and weaknesses, coming off as invincible machines._

_There are the Dervishes who hide beneath a whirlwind of sand and wind, slashing those who stand in the way of their own truths._

_The paragons who lie in the midst of battle to their comrades; in the face of defeat they scream words of inspiration lifting their spirits through lies._

_The rangers who hide beneath masks of beasts to become what they aren't. They are not beasts, they have not been and never will be, but to return to the simplicity of the nature of the beast is their ultimate goal._

_The Elementalists who delude themselves with airs of grandeur and power, deceiving themselves into false personas that make themselves stronger than everyone and anyone else._

_The assassins, they who lead lives based on lies and trickery. Ally of a Kurzick one day, slitting their throat the next for a Luxon. Defender of the Emperor for a year, the next plotting his eminent demise._

_The Ritualist, a dark priest who sees the truth and shuns it, blinding their eyes to it, and attempting to create their own beliefs by bringing back the dead. _

_Need I even speak of Mesmers who live off of twisting the truth? Their entire being is to contort, bend, and distort the world before our eyes._

_Even the monks who walk the roads of humility and honesty will lie to a dying man, a tainted woman, a sickened child whispering words of comfort while holding the hand that slowly grows colder with every passing second._

_The only ones in this world and the next to shoulder the burden of truth are the Necromancers, they who know the ultimate truth is the eventual death after life. These people who are shunned by society do not discriminate themselves. Whether the foe be human, Charr, beast, Kurzick, Luxon, or otherwise the result of a Necromancer's work is the same. _

_Watch! The bone minion from a Kurzick is the exact same as a bone minion born from a Luxon! Observe! The explosion from the Charr's corpse is the same as that of a human's! Equal in death, as they never have been in life! A necromancer never discriminates between races, ages, alliances, in death they are all the same! As they should be in life they find the freedom of equality in death. The truth is death is the one truth; equality is the one constant of death._

_The life stolen out of a Vabbian is the same stolen out of a river skale. In the eyes of the shunned all are equal, perhaps they are the wisest of us all._

_Perhaps it is through their isolation and excommunication that they are able to see the unfairness of the world? Or perhaps it is a subconscious act caused by the hidden mind?_

_But such a terrible fate indeed…to see the truth and not be able to expose it until the bitter end._

* * *

As the ship docked Dawn stumbled off it.

"I am NEVER, NEVER, I repeat, _NEVER_, traveling by ship again…especially not with the dimwit aboard…" she groaned, dropping her pack with a dull thump on the ground. Said dimwit bounced off the ship, excited.

"WE'RE FINALLY HEREEEEEEEEEEE!" He yelled bouncing from foot to foot, looking around eagerly. Zefiros opened the crate holding Amatsu, scratching his friend's head before turning to the hyper assassin.

"Aren't assassins supposed to be _quiet?_" Pumkin unlocked Wolfy and Chaud from their own crates, giving his friend an affectionate rub on the belly before chiding Zefiros for being rude. Madilim grumbled something about the idiocy of her companions and went with Orage to get their papers checked.

"It's…SO HOOO_OOOOOOT_" Lune wailed, clinging to his sister for support, she fanned herself with her hand that wasn't patting her brother on the shoulder.

"Ritualists…aren't made for this…this…this _HEAT_! My bandages are damp, _damp,_ with water that is _not_ my sweat! The humidity will destroy the urns!" She sighed. "We're going to have to pick up some local armor twin."

He cried out again… "so…HOOOO_OOOOOOT_", accenting the 't',before slipping of his sister's shoulder and flopping to the ground, he cried out and jumped back up, "the ground is hot-_ter_" he whispered to her, as if sharing a huge secret. She winced and they padded over the hot sand to the shade, wincing as each step burned them.

"Would you shut the hell up?"

"Aw, come on baby you know you love me"

A pair of bickering voices beckoned from the top of the docks.

"DELIUS!!!!!!!!!" Pins bellowed to a Ritualist at the top of the stairs. The Ritualist turned from where he was yelling at a Dervish in black Primeval armor. Madilim inwardly winced at the sight of them, both were clad in dark colors, surely they must be sweltering.

The Ritualist embraced his brother and was about to speak when he saw Madilim.

"IT'S YOU!" She stared at him a bit, stopping her examination of the group's paperwork to give the Ritualist a once over.

"Oh…it's you." She said after a while, smirk playing on her lips she returned to examining paperwork to give to the officials. Everyone looked back and forth between the somewhat amused and afraid Ritualist to the calm and sinisterly happy countess.

The dervish cleared his throat. The Ritualist (his wrap was off) blinked and shook his head.

"Sorry, this is the one Delius E told us about, remember Geil?" The dervish (his face was covered in shadow) tilted his head to the side and, after a moment, started laughing, a deep rumbling laugh that flowed over them all like water.

"So this is the little missy who put him in his place? Way to go lady, he's still afraid to go anywhere _near_ water." He placed an arm around Delius B in an attempt to support himself he started laughing so hard.

"What did you _do?_" Dawn prodded the necromancer. The Dark Queen shrugged.

"I put the fool in his proper place, the bottom of the food chain." She said nonchalant and pulled out one of the papers. "Pumkin you didn't fill out Wolfy's papers correctly, you're going to have to fix it before we can enter" she handed the offending paper to the ranger who examined the page before pulling out a quill and quickly scribbling in the correct information.

"…wait…I don't get it" Pins said, scratching his head. Dawn snickered.

"You don't get any_thing_ Pins." Pins frowned glaring at the assassin, not appreciating innuedo to his life.

"I do get some_things_ just not this."

"Remember when Delius E sent us a letter about that one girl he met in Grenth's footprint who did all those mean things to him?" Delius B (for blind) asked, attempting to pry a still laughing Geil off him.

"You mean the one about the 'evil bitch devil incarnate who deserves to be-'…oh" Pins stopped and burst out laughing. Zefiros and Zefi looked up from where they were checking over their pets.

"Madi-chan what _did y_ou _do?"_ Zefi asked.

"I _could_ tell you, you _could_ find it funny, you _could_ find it mean, you _could _find it sick and twisted in so many ways…_or_ you could reconsider asking that question" she said, examining another paper closer. Orage mumbled something about beautiful sadists and showed her one of the forms from his stack, she shook her head and he nodded.

Zefiros placed a hand on his sister's shoulder.

"Some things are better left unsaid." She looked as if she really, really wanted to ask the question but shut her mouth, shook her head and began to mumble to Chaud.

"Come on, we'll take you up to the Sunspear office." Geil said, sobering after a few more seconds. "A friend of mine wanted to talk to you, her name was Mercurial Mizu, know her?"

"My cousin." Madilim replied, handing everyone back their forms.

"I'm sorry for your loss" Geil remarked, not sounding sorry at all.

"Thank you" she replied, sounding not so grateful.

* * *

After standing in the hot sun for two hours, the twins nearly passing out from heat stroke, Orage snarling something about how leather was not supposed to stick in _those_ places, and Dawn cursing at some passing children they were all finally at the front of the line.

"I'm sorry ma'am but the office is closing for lunch…" a poor Sunspear held his hands up trying to appease the pissed off countess.

"Listen punk, my friends and I have been standing out here for _two_ Grenth forsaken hours trying to hand in our forms for our _diplomatic_ mission that _Kormir_ called us in for. Now take the damn papers or eat my fucking_ minion_." She growled slamming a bundle of damp pages in front on the Sunspear's desk.

He gulped, nodding and examined the first paper, growing pale as he did so. He threw the paper down, jumping up and screaming.

"YOU'RE HER!" he screamed jabbing a finger in her face then he turned to Orage, "AND YOU'RE HIM!" Orage smiled, Mesmer side pulling through revealing sharp fang-like teeth, the officer pulled his hand back as if afraid it was going to be bitten off and ran off screaming in Elonian. Geil and Delius B watched in amusement.

"As you can see, you and your friends have become insanely famous here in Elona." Geil mused.

"Really? We didn't notice" Dawn drawled. A dervish in grayish blue Elite Sunspear robes walked over.

"Cousin, I hope that the recruit didn't startle you too badly." Mizu saluted Madilim before nodding to Geil and Delius B.

"Mizu, it has been too long, do explain what's happening?"

"Well…Muulto and Ebony sent letters to Valkyrie and me explaining what happened and your inauguration as countess. Val being Val she started screaming at the top of her lungs about how proud she was of you and how she wished she could have been there, that lead to the children listening and telling their parents, the parents spreading gossip. This leads to that and next thing you know Kage, Col, you and the rest of ya are the biggest news to hit Istan and Elona, perhaps Vabbi."

Dawn groaned, how she hated attention. She slipped into the shadows; she wasn't needed to fill out paperwork. It was time to explore.

"Now children don't act up afraid that 'the Bloody Kisaki' will come and get rid of them at night, men don't get drunk or cheat on women because they fear that 'the Cold Empress' will freeze them in their sleep and lord knows how much the rest of you terrify the rest of them." Mizu snickered. Madilim sighed, rubbing her temples. Orage laughed, the Mesmer in him soaking up all the attention.

"So…is it possible to have our papers approved? Sometime now?" Lune snapped, tired and sticky from the long morning. Mizu smiled, her eyes hidden by the hood and waved them over.

"Come, it's cooler inside the building." Madilim turned to the others.

"I'll fill in your paper work, go and wander, try to find dawn, we don't need another incident." She said, directing the last part of it to Pins who had an uncanny knack of finding the other assassin whenever she went off on her wanderings, referring to the incident in Kaineng that spurred the guards to almost arrest them all.

"Yes ma'am" Pins mock saluted.

* * *

Dawn wandered around the Sunspear bunkers, it looked pretty plain, dark too, perfect place for an assassin. She pulled her mask down, or to be more accurate, peeled it off, the sweat from the sun sticking the leather to her face. She grimaced and pocketed the cloth. She stiffened and whirled around, knives out and stance ready.

"Who's there?"

"Hello to you too" a voice spoke from her left, she shifted her weight, regretting taking the mask off. If he had some sort of smoke or poison in such a small room there'd be no way she'd escape. She dove at the door and ran up to the mess hall, ignoring the looks she was getting, at least in a crowd she'd blend in.

She pulled her mask on once again taking a quick look around, or maybe she wouldn't blend in, she groaned, she wasn't in Cantha anymore. Everyone here had dark skin and white armor, she on the other blade had dark armor and light skin.

Everyone's attention was suddenly diverted the door she came in from, every Sunspear standing at attention saluting. She turned to face the mystery man.

Dawn stared at the man in front of her. He didn't _look _all that special, so why did everyone in the barracks suddenly go silent when he entered? He didn't look out of the ordinary, dark skin, pale hair and eyes, white armor with gold trim, a spear tied to his back and a shield that was narrow and long. He smiled revealing pearl white teeth, startling against the deep brown russet of his skin. His voice was deep and low.

"Are you one of the ones Kormir sent for from Cantha?" He said, giving her a once over with his pale eyes, she shifted underneath the gaze.

"Aa." She intoned. Glaring at him in response.

"Then allow me to welcome you to Istan, I known as the Sunspear Callestellan, Paragon of Balthazar, my name is Mahkado, Mahkado Sindra." He made a wide sweeping bow, was he mocking her? Two could play at that game.

"Well then Paragon of Balthazar, Sunspear Callestellan Mahkado Sindra, I accept your welcome. I am referred to as Dawn Lockhart, Assassin of Lyssa, friend and protector of the Dark One." She pulled her mask up tighter speak of the devil, as she said the last part of her sentence Madilim, the Dark One herself strode into the barracks. She looked stunning in her new Kurzick armor, Orage followed close behind, none of the Banes or the Luxon twins were in sight though, how odd.

"Of course you'd be here." Madilim rolled her eyes. "Come one, we have to find the others, Mizu will show us the scene of the crime…and after I identify the body it will be…cremated." She told Dawn with some difficulty.

"Alright, lets go" Dawn turned her back to the man and followed Orage out the tent. Madilim turned to walk out but stared at the paragon.

He smiled and gave her a bow.

She stared at him once more and placing a hand on Goukai said "A fallen angel", she turned and left the barracks, leaving a confused paragon and a hall full of terrified recruits to their befuddlement.

* * *

A few miles out of Kamadan Mizu stopped them at a lake, there was a campfire that had burned itself out and the magical outlines of four bodies, near the water was another magical outline of a fifth. Mizu pointed at the fifth outline.

"That one was Val." She said, choking a little on the emotion. Madilim and Orage stepped into the water and waded to the outline.

"Where's the body?" Orage said, turning to the group of Sunspears that had accompanied them. A Mesmer came forward.

"The Sunspear Great Hall, but we thought you'd want to see the scene first, the death was very…strange."

"Strange as is 'unexpected strange' or strange as in 'holy crap a monster' strange?" Pumkin said, examining the area around the grass, nodding to Wolfy who had started sniffing around the campsite.

"How about strange as in 'holy Mother of Dwanya save us all!'?" the Ranger of the Sunspears said.

"What condition were the bodies found in?" Zefiros asked the ranger, examining the outlines of the bodies, which were very vague. The Mesmer whispered a few words and the marks glowed and created illusions of the corpses.

Valkyrie was half naked and floating in the water, hair tossed and face mauled. Mizu turned to the captain of the squadron.

"Was she?" her voice hesitant. The squadron leader shook his head, both she and Madilim breathed out sighs of relief.

"Countess zu Lamig, if you would please come to formally identify your cousin's body the funeral can be organized." The priestess of the Sunspears said, bowing slightly as she addressed the Dark Queen. Madilim nodded taking one last look at the illusion before wading back to the shore, grasping for Orage's hand the entire time.

As they walked to the Sunspear Great Hall she turned back to the scene and whispered.

"Fly free fair cousin."

In the trees far above a bird stretched its tawny wings and flies over the water.

**

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**

TBC


	3. Trust: Say Goodbye

_People are greedy and corrupt. There is no such thing as a 'good' person; in the end everyone is only interested in themselves. There is no such thing as a 'good' person, in the end everyone just thinks of their own benefit._

_Trust is a fragile thing; it is the equivalent of walking a blade of ice to put the delicate trust in a person._

_It is a mistake that I will never be foolish enough to commit again, therefore I have allies._

_Allies are mutual benefits who will neither hinder you nor take from you but help you as long as you help them, as long as there is a thing to be gained from both parties the alliance is working._

_When either they or I cease to be useful I shall cut my ties, until then I wait…_

_For I will never be foolish enough, again, to dare think that I, a wanderer and a killer, can ever be trusted again…and I will never be naive enough to place my own trust into someone else's hands._

* * *

"That is her" Madilim said, staring at the cold remains of her cousin, she pulled out a thin leather tube and extracted a pale white scroll. She unfurled it allowing the jumbled scrawl to see the light once again. She handed it to Mizu.

"I, Valkyrie Lunaris, leave all my worldly possessions to my sister, should she be alive, Mercurial Mizu. Should she be deceased as I am I hand over my possessions to the House zu Lamig and the current reigning Count or Countess. In the event that the House zu Lamig has fallen and no heir or heiress has stepped up to take their claim I send my belongings to the Sunspears." Mercurial Mizu read out loud from the scroll, voice in perfect control, she lowered the scroll. "Hail to the Sunspears, we never fight alone" she whispered, gently placing the will on the table next to her sister's body and left the room.

Dunkoro watched the Sunspear General he had come to respect walk out of the tent, although her posture was stiff and straight, formal as always he saw the air of defeat and shock surrounding her, tainting her usual aura of control and strength. He turned to the Countess who leaned against the wall, just as cold as the dead body that lay before her.

Was this truly the Dark Queen who had risen to claim her throne?

"Don't stare at her like that" a voice whispered from the shadows behind him. A shiver ran up the war veteran's spine. That voice…so dark, so cold…so evil. He turned around to face the speaker and was startled to see Orage. The Black Storm stepped out of the shadows and back into them once again as he moved to stand by his Queen's side.

It was in that moment of exposure to the light that Dunkoro saw, and _realized._

Orage gently took Madilim's arm and led her out of the Sunspear Great Hall to where the others were, waiting outside out of respect for the grieving countess and General.

As the couple passed Dunkoro grabbed Orage's elbow, jerking the necromancer back. Madilim turned and looked at them, Orage smiled and waved her off. She hesitated but continued forward, a hand resting on the embossed skull on her hip.

Orage watched her walk away, smile still in place on his face, the moment she was out of sight he whirled to face the elder man, face contorting into that of a demon's.

"What?" He snarled, pitch eyes flared bright, the red veins surrounding them only enhancing the effect, his sharp teeth bared in irritation. "Don't _touch_ me monk, I'm sure that the few Dark Ones of your order have told you what it feels like" Orage rubbed his elbow, hissing as he felt the lingering presence of Dwanya's touch on his dark essence.

Dunkoro shrunk back, eyes widening to expose the whites. He drew up his hands and made the sign for 'demon' with his fingers, he whispered prayers to Dwanya in his native tongue of Elonian. Orage glared at the man and hissed.

"I understand you, you know." He spoke, Elonian rolling off his tongue like his native Canthan. The war veteran took another step back, his whispering turning frantic. "What, never seen a necromancer before? Not that I'm surprised, what with all this bloody _heat_." Orage grumbled. "Was there something you wanted? Or did you just want to have a good dose of fear?"

"_I know what you are!"_ Dunkoro whispered, fear lacing his voice. Orage stared at him for a moment.

"Really?" He said, drawing closer to the monk, matching each of the monk's retreating steps with his own advance forward. "Do you now?" A sinister smile crept over his face, distorting his handsome features into that of a fearsome beauty.

"_You do not belong here!"_ the monk choked out, the dark aura's strangle hold depriving him of air.

"I belong wherever I _want_ to belong fool…and you shall not speak of this to anyone…because…" The aura clenched tighter. "there is nothing for you to speak of." The aura dispelled and Orage was halfway towards the door. "Because I'm just another child of Grenth passing by." He tossed over his shoulder, snickering the inner Mesmer laughing with joy as he left the terrified monk behind him.

As the great doors of the Sunspear Hall closed Dunkoro rose to his feet, shaking, he started to make the sign of 'demon' but changed halfway to…'devil'.

* * *

As the group set up camp for the night by the river Zefi bolted up staring determinedly down at them all from her rock perch where she was salvaging loot.

"We need to bathe." She stated. Everyone stared up at her like she was crazy, except for Zefiros, who simply didn't care what she said as long as it made her happy, Madilim who had mastered a look of indifference mixed with condescending authority, and Orage who had a constantly slight amused smile playing on his lips.

"There's no where _to_ bathe Zefi." Dawn said, staring at the ranger.

"We're next to a river, there's lots of places to bathe." She retorted. Lune and Luna leaned in whispering to each other for a few moments before Luna pulled back.

"We really do need to bathe" she said and stood up, gathered a few things from her bag and walked towards the river. Zefi hopped down, picked up her own things and walked after her, stopping next to Madilim on the way.

"You're coming with us Madi-chan, there's only so much being a Minion Master can excuse." The duckling stared at the Queen for a while, neither backing down until Orage nudged Madilim a bit and she sighed, relenting under the pressure of her two closest friends. She picked up her own toiletries and started walking, albeit rather reluctantly, towards the water. Zefi and Orage shared a smile before the prior scuttled off to join Madilim.

"Aren't you going with them Dawn?" Pumkin asked the assassin who looked rather edgy, shifting from one foot to the other. Pins glanced at his peer.

"She's going to make sure the girls are safe and then bathe later, 'cuz she's so paranoid like that, isn't that right Dawn?" He said, returning to setting up one of the tents. Dawn's head snapped to him before she nodded, a quick jerking movement and she strode after the girls with quick retreating steps.

Zefiros' eyes flicked up at Pins from his sleeping roll.

"You care a lot for her." He said, running a hand over Amatsu's nape, eliciting a deep purr from his feline friend. Pins froze for a moment before shrugging.

"We trained together, we've grown on each other." He stated, fastening a chord to a pike in the ground, grunting as he attempted to get the poles straighter. Pumkin looked up from where he was skinning a rabbit they found for the diner.

"It's past that, she controls you, you defend her, and when you fight it's like you're in total sync with each other." Pins stopped in his efforts to set up the tent and stood up to face the rest of the men.

"What is this a convention or something? We are not together, ok? Jeez. I mean, I don't see _Lune_ hitting on his sister, do you?" He snapped, causing Lune to choke on the sip of water he'd just taken.

Orage snickered, hitting the ritualist's back as the Luxon hacked up the water.

"That's just wrong Pins, please…never go there again." Lune wheezed as he recovered his breath. Pins chuckled a little before shaking his head and going back to setting up the tent.

"Sure, sure." He said, tossing the agreement over his shoulder, not really meaning it.

The girls returned shortly after, and the boys took their turn while the girls finished preparing diner. As they ate their meals and chattered by the fire Zefi had so kindly lit for them with a very unnecessary fire storm Dawn slipped away to the water.

She slipped her clothes off and sank into the water, scrubbing grime off her limbs.

"Pins don't you dare steal my under clothes again…" she said, not pausing in her task. The assassin in white behind her stopped in mid motion then shrugged sheepishly, knowing she'd sense the movement and sat himself on a rock, facing away from the assassin.

"You know…you should just tell them about it rather than hide it." He said nonchalant, leaning against the rock wall next to him. She stilled for a moment, a hand softly brushing her lower abdomen.

"It's none of their business, none of _your_ business." She said, quiet. Both killers stood still for a moment, listening to the sounds of the wilderness, the lapping of the water, cackle of the fire, rustle of the wind, and the dry whispers of the leaves. In the distance the chatter went on undisturbed.

"Maybe you should tell them about _your_ past." She said after the pause, knowing her words hit true when the man behind her sat up, spine rigid.

"They don't need to know, it does not bother them, it rouses no suspicion." He said, words tense.

"Oh, but it does, I'm sure that they'll all want to know more about you-" She pressed, voice heavy with menace, he cut her off mid-sentence.

"Shut up!" He snarled, whirling around, mismatched eyes glowing with defiance. She turned in the water matching his glare with her own heated gaze. He sighed, raising his hands in a peace gesture. She resumed scrubbing various unidentifiable masses of beast filth off her limbs.

"I shouldn't have said that" he finally said after a few awkward moments. After getting no answer he sighed "Madilim and Luna wondered where you went, best come back soon…they think we have a _thing_ for each other." He shuddered, Dawn bit back a smile.

He got up and disappeared into the shadows.

"Pins" she called out knowing he was still close enough to hear her with his sharp trained senses. "Thank you for always watching." She said, grabbing a cloth from the bank to dry off.

"…No problem." She heard before his presence disappeared altogether.

* * *

"We have gathered here today to honor the fall of one of our soldiers, a fallen member of our Order. Please pay your last respects to Sunspear Commander Valkyrie Lunaris as she is carried to the light." Kormir said, voice carrying over the vast plains south of Kamadan to the large crowd of assembled soldiers and mourners.

Everyone's heads bowed as a group of four Sunspears carried the body to the funeral pyre. A few took quick glances at the body, flinching as they saw the mauling to the corpse that had not been healed for the burning.

Whispers floated about as the body was given its last prayers.

"I heard that her sister and identifier refused to have her body prepared…"

"I heard that the identifier came all the way from Cantha!"

"The sister isn't even mourning!"

"I heard that she's related to royalty…"

Mizu stood up front, next to the funeral pyre, dressed not in her Elite Sunspear garb but Obsidian Armor, her finest gear. Madilim stood somewhat behind her, obscured by the shadows in a dress she had to get from a Xunlai vault, she could not dress as a soldier, she was (although she did not want to be) still a Countess after all.

Everyone else stood in the front row on her side, she and Orage passed glances, not daring to let their auras flare with so many Sunspears about.

_**It's ok to cry…**_

_Shush Yuurei…respect the silence while it lasts. Tomorrow they'll have someone in her place and her moment will be lost forever._

_**It is improper to cry at a Sunspear's funeral. The silence is to remember her greatness, not mourn for her defeat. To be joyful of her ascent to the light and not think of darkness.**_

_**You know a lot about this.**_

_**Used to be one.**_

_**What happened?**_

_**Got killed.**_

_We can talk about this later, both of you be quiet._

As the body was lowered into the pyre Madilim sent a prayer to Grenth as she felt Mizu next to her whisper a prayer to Melandru to accept the body back into the lands.

It was over, she was gone and the time for mourning had stopped. Chatter immediately rose up as the assembled crowd began to disperse and return to their duties. Madilim descended the small hill she had stood on to stand by her friends who had also changed into finer garb, save Orage who claimed to have none.

"I believe that I should always look my finest." He had said with a shrug.

The Bane twins where dressed in Ancient armor that they had gotten crafted specially made. Pumkin was dressed in Elite Druid armor, on all three the masks where down for respect.

The Luxon twins had following Luna's advice, gotten new armor, however they had sent home and received Elite Luxon garb, the head wraps where also left off, the Jade beads clinked quietly as they whispered their prayers, heads bowed making hand gestures every few moments.

Pins had switched out from his white Imperial armor to a gray neutral Elite Canthan one, head bowed down, mask hanging from one hand.

Dawn stood next to him, in gray as usual in Elite Canthan armor as well, however she held her mask up, unwilling to respect someone she did not know, to this Madilim nodded, showing her acceptance to the assassin's opinion.

"So…are we going to find the bad guy who did this? Or do we head home to fight the plague?" Dawn asked, itching to get out of her Canthan armor and back into her Seitung garbs. Madilim stared at the dying pyre.

"What do you guys want?" she asked, not caring either way.

"Let's go back to Cantha…I really don't like the heat." Orage said, grimacing as he attempted to pry some of the leather plates off his skin. "Nor does my armor." The Bane twins nodded in sympathy.

"We'd like to go back to Cantha as well, however we also want to destroy what did that. Both are evil" Lune said, speaking for both him and his sister.

"Let's stay here, I haven't even gotten to see my other brother yet!" Pins whined, naturally immune to the heat.

"I really don't care, but I'm not looking forward to riding a ship again." Dawn said, shifting anxious from foot to foot.

"I want to explore!" Zefi said, knowing her brother's would agree with her either way.

_Goukai? Yuurei? What say you?_

_**Stay, explore, search, find what did this.**_

**I really don't give a damn.**

"I guess we're staying then…" She sighed, personally hoping they'd want to go home too.

Orage groaned.

_I hate Elona._

He thought…although no one heard.

In back Dunkoro stared at the upset necromancer and repeated the sign of the devil. He'd have to watch that one.

**TBC**


	4. Mortals: Ambushed

**Notes: Story notes are posted on my page as well as replies to anonymous reviews and comments on upcoming updates/chapter info. It also includes a summary of the next chapter if there is one and some various bits of explaining that hasn't been done here.**

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Mortals are such foolish beings…hypocritical, foolish, selfish, and entirely too trusting.

_They are paradoxal in nature, they trust in their God's so much, yet they do not trust each other._

_They selflessly give to those of their own clan yet hoard their own treasure when it comes down to it._

_They preach about liars and sinners, yet they turn around and deceive their own people, controlling through coercion. _

_These creatures…that slowly choke the other species of this large world, how dare they think they superior to the other creatures placed her by the Gods? What do they think makes them so special?_

_It is not the word of tongue, for there are other creatures that have evolved beyond it and into the realm of the mind._

_It is not conscious thought for other creatures, such as Charr, and Mursaat have that as well, and speaking from experience have better thoughts._

_Is it the ability to adapt? I have seen creatures in one continent and the exact same creature in another, I have seen creatures in the north and the south, both perfectly adapted._

_Perhaps it is the ability to harness magic, but a plethora of the other species that we share this realm with have mastered magics far superior to that of mortal humans. _

_They are fools to think themselves special, think themselves so great, killing other creatures they deem 'evil'. What makes a Charr evil? The will to defend their homeland? The will to survive?_

_What makes a Mursaat so bad? The want to live away from humans? The urge to return to nature?_

_What makes a wind rider or an Avalanche, Warden, even an Oni so terrible? The want to continue living as they have been for centuries before the human's existence? _

_Humans…they are no more special than the rest of us, for they are just cogs in the giant machine that is the toy project of the Gods. And when that cog stops working for the greater good of this world, the Gods have charged me and my kind to destroy that cog. Remove that which destroys the machine, like a plague, like a disease, like rust and rot it must be removed._

_I look forward to that day…_

* * *

They set up camp once again outside of Kamadan, in between the Jewel of Istan and the Great Hall of Sunspears, next to the river and the shoreline among the trees. Mizu retreated to the great hall with Geil and Delius B to their sleeping quarters. Dawn perched herself in a tree, curling up quietly, pressing her head to her knees. Silent, more so than usual.

The heiress slipped behind another clump of trees to slip out of the dress and pull on her leather Kurzick armor. She stepped out tightening the straps, taking a passing glance the gray assassin who had long changed back to her normal attire.

"Are you coming down?" She called up to her.

"N." The assassin grunted, shifting so she didn't have to face the countess.

"Suit yourself, but come down soon." The necromancer said, shrugging.

_What's wrong with her?_

_**No idea…you should try talking to her.**_

_**You think talking would help that one? Psh, you're stupider than I thought.**_

_**Well at least I care you dolt.**_

_Why is it you two bicker like a married couple whenever you talk? Can you two not get along?_

**_Married…to that idiot? GRENTH FORBID IT_**

_**Ey Gads that's preposterous. Don't fool around.**_

_Che…could've fooled me._

Zefi looked up from where she was applying a shocking bowstring to her short bow.

"Pins?" she said, not removing her eyes from the silent assassin.

"Yea?" The male said from where he was attempting to pry a stubborn rune from a piece of equipment a corsair dropped. He jiggled one of his tools a bit making a pleased sound as the rune slid out still leaving the armor intact.

"What's wrong with her?" She said returning to untying her old bowstring, gently tucking it away to be reused later.

"Sulking, Moping, I don't know." He said, attempting to salvage the armor itself this time.

Zefiros, and all the other males exchanged a look.

"I suppose you wouldn't know then would you _Pins?_" Orage said, sending the Elonian assassin a look.

"Know what?" He said, perking up a little bit, curious.

"What's bugging her?" Pumkin pressed.

"I just said I didn't" Pins rolled his eyes, returning to his work.

"I think you do, you just don't want to tell us." Zefiros said picking off a piece of raw lizard meat and slipping it to Amatsu, smiling a little as the large cat licked the palm of his hand before taking the offered treat.

"Now why would that be?'" Pins said, exasperated, throwing down the garment. He obviously wasn't going to get any work done like this.

"You two are awfully close" Luna said from where she was roasting a small desert hare. Hissing as a piece of fat spat onto her skin, singing her a bit. Her twin placed a hand over the wound, healing it with a few choice prayers.

"Well wouldn't you be close if you trained with her for like, since you _started_ your job?" He said, leaning back against a rock, frowning. Pins wasn't liking where this was going.

"Seriously, you always know where she is and we almost _never_ see you two apart. Sometimes it's like your more of a couple than Orage and Madilim are" Lune commented, wagging a finger in his direction.

"I thought we already had this discussion? We. Are. Not. A. Couple. There is _nothing_ of that sort between us, never has been, never will be."

"So there _was_ something of _some_ sort between you two?" Orage needled, picking up the assassin's choice of words. Pins groaned in response, hitting his head against the tree.

"What's with you all? It's like you _want_ something to be between us." He winced as he said those words, womanizer he may be (it is in his genes), but he was not interested in the assassin in the tree, rather he was more interested in being able to have children, someday, maybe, if he settled down.

Zefi looked between him and the other assassin before shrugging and going back to work on her bow, fiddling with a few inscriptions.

"Oh I get it!" He suddenly exclaimed brightening causing everyone to look back at him once again. "You asked because you didn't want me to be cheating on her with Zefi! Aw Zefi, don't be jealous! I'll always love you most" He said, flashing a bright smile at the appalled ranger.

Zefiros gagged a bit and Pumkin attempted a laugh, it came out as a snarl.

"Uh…" she said staring at him before getting up and walking away to sit next to the Necromancers, rather dazed judging by the way she tripped over a rather large rock. "OW!"

Zefiros sighed, helped his twin up and sat her down on the rock she just tripped over on. He handed her her supplies, sitting next to her on the ground and began to feed Amatsu once again. Chaud nudged the still stunned ranger before resting her head on her mistress' lap.

* * *

Madilim picked at her food, not very hungry. Orage sent her a sympathetic look.

"You don't have to force yourself." He said, frowning as she mechanically chewed a piece of tender meat and swallowed it.

"I can't fight if I don't eat," she said, remembering her days in the temple when she was denied food for bad behavior, smiling a bit at the thought.

"Just go to sleep, you can take a ration pill tomorrow." He said, pulling her up and guiding her to the tent, setting both of their leaves of food down on the ground.

"That's not very healthy," she said, making a face, but allowing him to settle her into a sleeping roll. She was very tired, more so than usual.

"Go to sleep, don't worry, I'll take your watch for you." He said, smoothing her hair down before getting up to go back to the campfire, even as he said those words her breathing had slowed and her eyes dropped closed. He turned back to look at her face bathed in a mixture of moon and firelight. "You'll need your strength for what's to come…" he whispered to the sleeping woman.

"Is she ok?" Zefi said, looking up from her meal now snapped out of her daze. Orage shrugged, handing the leaves of meat to the ranger.

"She'll be fine, she's just tired, here, we won't be eating it." The ranger sighed, placing the food on the ground for Wolfy and Amatsu, Chaud was still small; she didn't need as much to eat as the other two did.

Zefi looked around him at the sleeping Countess' tent, Madilim had been acting rather subdued, more so than she usually is ever since they got to Elona, perhaps the heat was getting to the dark-clad woman? Pumkin placed a hand on his little sister's shoulder, knowing that she'd be worrying.

"I'll give her a vial of troll unguent tomorrow. Don't worry little sister, it's just the heat." He said, rubbing a comforting circle on her back. She nodded and returned to the chatter of the fire.

* * *

Dawn stared at them from the trees. They look so happy, perhaps she should tell them? No, she shouldn't, they didn't need to know…she could be wrong. It might not have been the same. It could have been anything, a skale, a harpy, corsair…it couldn't be _**them**._ She'd made sure _**they**_ where long gone, she had…hadn't she? Yes, she was sure of it, she'd destroyed each and every single last one of _**them**._

A small pang made itself known from her abdomen; she absently rubbed the area, activating her secondary profession as a ranger to ease the pain.

* * *

From the shadows of the water a pair of eyes watched them before blinking out of sight.

* * *

Later during Pins' watch the assassin jumped to sit in a tree branch somewhere below Dawn.

"I know your awake" he whispered in assassin code, knowing she wouldn't be able to sleep in these conditions.

"Yay for you. Go away."

"Can't, watching the camp. You know the more you act like this the more they'll be suspicious…which means the more they'll bug me. I don't like people bugging me, do you like people bugging you?" He chattered.

"I like it when people bug _you_, I kill them when they bug me. That's the difference between us Pins, you're too soft."

"And you're too vengeful" he replied smoothly, ignoring the threat in her words. She stared down at him before resuming her watch of the lake, knowing his words meant no harm.

"I'm afraid." She whispered. He didn't even look at her.

"I would think you are, I'd call you a fool if you weren't." He said, eyes darting across the clearing searching for any signs of a breach in security.

"I don't want them to worry." She said, limbs hanging down with a sort of odd defeat.

"Then tell them." He said, still not really caring.

"I don't want to drag them into it either." She continued, not really talking to him but to herself.

"It's their choice whether they want to be involved or not." His eyes focused on the water for a few moments before they continued their vigilant watch.

"Those words could be directed at you as well." She said, finally focusing on him instead of her own thoughts.

He shrugged.

"But it's not necessary for them to know, it doesn't apply to anything at all." Both of them froze, Dawn sensed someone stepping into range of her flame traps.

Pins leapt into the camp, striking a fire with a match, Dawn drew her blades darting to the tents, waking up their occupants.

"Who's there?" Pins called out, tense. Everyone took their stances, Madilim moving slightly slower than the others due to her fatigue. Orage stood behind her, a supporting hand at her elbow. Lune and Luna exchanged glances, Lune stepped up behind both necromancers, placing a hand on each of their soldiers and began murmuring prayers of protection.

Madilim sighed, the quiet wash of Dwanya's power was calming and yet it stung as it hit her core of power.

Orage grit his teeth, Dwanya's power biting at his own fighting for dominance trying to subdue his inner darkness. He'd endure the annoyance; it was a necessary act he would not have to tolerate for much longer.

A net flew down from the trees ensnaring the three of them; Dawn rushed to cut them open but was tackled into the brush by a blur of purple and blue.

Pins whirled around to aide his partner but was hit by a broad head arrow, he snarled as the arrow dug into his shoulder, he pulled it out and hurled it back at its archer, dashing to the bushes without waiting to hear the scream of pain that resounded.

Madilim summoned a flesh golem followed shortly by Vampiric and, the new additions to her army, jagged horrors. She coughed a little; sweat breaking out on her forehead from exertion. Orage sent her a wave of power using what little inspiration magic he knew, knowing it was futile and that magical energy wasn't the same as life.

Zefi set an arrow on fire using the embers of their camp and fired them at the purple and blue clad ambushers.

Zefiros whispered prayers over Amatsu as the feline charged attacker after attacker, sinking poisonous fangs into their vital arteries. Pumkin sent Wolfy after Dawn, trusting his friend to keep himself safe and quickly dipped the tips of his arrows in poison, his expert fingers not spilling a drop of the acidic substance. He watched with satisfaction as the tainted arrows sailed in the air with streams of greenish smoke trailing behind them like ribbons. Each landed with a sickening hiss on their targets, beginning to eat away at the flesh of the assailants, creating an acidic smell that made him wrinkle his nose.

Luna sent a heal at the rangers and the animals, glancing while attempting to break her twin and the necromancers free from their prison. Thankfully the net did not block magical attacks so the three continued to help although slightly hindered by the lack of room to maneuver.

The attackers exchanged a glance before retreating, leaving the group baffled at the sudden lack of targets to hit.

A strangled yell came from the bushes just as Luna's splinter weapon cut the net open. Exchanging worried glances they all dashed to where the cry came from.

Madilim hissed, Pins lay on the ground, bleeding form a gaping wound in his side, white armor quickly turning coppery red. Orage bit his lip, the tempting aroma of life teasing his dead senses.

Luna and Lune quickly set to work on healing his side, he coughed up blood and shook his head.

He attempted to speak, blood flowing out of his mouth as he continued to hack at the substance clogging his throat, chest heaving for air.

Zefi knelt next to him, uncorking a bottle of troll unguent, dropping a few of the extremely vital drops into his mouth.

He swallowed quickly and inhaled.

"Dawn" he said, voice hoarse and pained before his eyes closed, pain and weariness overcoming his will to give his message. Zefiros quickly scanned the area; the other assassin wasn't there, gone.

"Where is she?" he said, panic making his normally calm voice seem frantic, his amethyst eyes taking in every shadow and texture in an attempt to find a trail.

"What's going on?" A deep voice said from the waters, Zefi drew a fire ball and threw it at the voice.

"Hey! Watch it!" Another voice said from where Zefi had thrown the ball.

Mizu, Geil, Delius, and a paragon emerged from the shadows.

Delius glanced at his brother, quickly kneeling to add his assistance and check him over.

"You were right Delius, remind me never to doubt you again." Mizu said, stepping next to her cousin, supporting the countess' weight as her knees gave out.

"What happened here?" the paragon said, "Delius said there'd be trouble tonight and left to find you guys." Geil stared at the sands and began to send a prayer to Melandru, the sand shifting to reveal footprints and various words inscribed into the earth.

"An ambush." He said, voice distant, eyes closed, he drifted around the area as if a ghost, "a fight, a dark aura, very dark. Something bad was here, Melandru is not pleased, Grenth is worried, Dwanya is doubtful. _**They**_ have returned to Elona" he finished, eyes opening as he stood in the center of their campsite.

Delius looked up from where he was holding his brother. "I told you so, Grenth would not lie."

Mizu lay the exhausted countess on the ground, propping her up against the tree. "What did you fight to get you so exhausted?"

"Nothing, I was in a net, I was just summoning minions." She panted.

"Did you use your blood?" Mizu said, pulling out a ration pill and handing it to the necromancer who swallowed it gratefully.

"No, just summoning, I've been so tired lately, no idea why though. Probably the heat." She shrugged, Mizu looked doubtful but stood up to check on the others.

"Who is they?" Pumkin asked the paragon. "And who are you?"

"I am Mahkado Sindra, Sunspear Callestellan, head Sunspear in charge of making sure _**they**_ don't get back to Elona." Geil snorted.

"Obviously he's failed…" Delius shot a glare at the dervish. "What? He did!" Geil pouted.

"But who is _they?_" Zefi pressed, confused and worried. "What do they want with Dawn?"

"It's more like what **_they_ **don'twant from her little ranger." Mizu said.

"_**They**_ are those whose names must not be spoken, you never know when someone is apart of _**them**._ _**They**_ where banished from Elona years ago, and it's been a special squadron of Sunspear's duty to make sure **_they_** do not return and to exterminate them if they do since then." Delius said, lying his brother down on the sand. "We are that squadron, our leader Mahkado, our guide Geil, watcher Mizu, and I the seer Delius."

"What makes you so special?" Zefiros said, they didn't look any different except for the well-made armor, which was the same style as everyone else's that he'd seen.

Mizu smiled a grim smile.

"We where chosen by the Gods in a ceremony and bestowed upon power to search and destroy _**them**_." She said, pulling down her hood and turning her face to expose a thin tattoo tracing from her temple to her collarbone. Pumkin examined the markings that glowed a faint gold copper. "We were given the powers to find **_them_**, root out their evil and banish it. As a result we cannot work with the other Sunspears, but we must always be on the move, watching and waiting for _**them**_." Mizu pulled her hood back up.

"And we have failed." Geil finished. "I have no idea how _**they**_ got here thought."

"What makes them so evil that the Gods themselves give power to humans to kill them?" Orage asked from the shadows where he sat, supporting Madilim as she continued to try and catch her breath.

"_**They**_ have done horrible things, and **_their_ **power stretches farther than Elona, to Cantha and Tyria, Kryta and what used to be Ascalon." Delius spoke. "If you want to know more we must find the Whispers, close allies of ours in our hunt to destroy _**them**_. If we can find them I'm sure we'll find Dawn."

"Is it possible, what attacked us also attacked Valkyrie?" Madilim said, standing, wobbling a bit before finally standing straight.

Mizu eyed her and exchanged a glance with Mahkado.

"Yes."

"They shall suffer." Madilim said, eyes glowing a faint green, the promise of death. Mahkado nodded.

"Come, there is much work to be done."

**

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TBC


	5. Family: Them

**Notes: Updates will sorta be infrequent (more so than usual) because of limited time on computer and various other projects I'm working on.**

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It's not fair.

_The first time I saw my brothers was two weeks after I met my new family after my mother died. A parade, a festival, they were celebrating some trivial holiday and my mother died unknown, faceless._

_I hate them. I despise them, I wish they where dead._

_These feelings are mutual._

_I saw them in their splendor and their richness, the vibrant color and loud joy, fine silks and satins, the precious gems and metals. But they are cold, cold callus bastards._

_I felt the hand of my new family, rough and calloused from work, scratched and weathered from fighting, poor and commonly dressed. It felt warm. I love them more than I've ever had my old one. I hope they all rot…all of them._

_So on that day I turned my back on them and joined ranks with my new family, to this day I have not looked back. _

* * *

"Welcome to the Chantry of Secrets" a man in pure red garb greeted them, "Delius E is at the shrine of Balthazar."

"Delius is here? Already?" Delius B said, surprised, Geil placed a restraining hand on his lover's shoulder.

"We'll talk to him later, first we should tend to the questions of our guests." Mahkado said to the Ritualist who nodded in response, sending a glance towards the direction of Balthazar's temple.

"Big brother is here?" Pins said, perking up from where he was propped up on Geil's shoulder.

"Apparently" Mizu grumbled. "Damn asshole."

"I take it he's tried his womanizing ways on you too?" Madilim said, somewhat back in good health. Mizu sighed and rubbed a gloved hand across her face.

"If he wasn't one of my squadron I'd have cut him in two." Madilim nodded, Orage squeezed her hand.

Another member of the secrets organization led them to a building off to the side of the encampment. He pushed open the door for them, head bowed as they passed him entering, once they where all inside he bowed once again and closed the door.

"Alright, where do we begin?" Mahkado said, sitting himself down on a straw chair, gesturing for everyone to follow suit. Orage sat down, pulling Madilim into his lap rubbing circles on the small of her back as she leaned into his chest, tired eyes closing.

Zefi sat on the floor leaning her back against her twin's legs, Amatsu and Chaud resting their heads on her knees. Pumkin sat down next to her, Wolfy lying down next to him, head on his paws.

Lune and Luna squeezed themselves into one chair, sighing in resignation as their heat soaked skin stuck a little.

Pins sunk onto the ground and leaned against a wall.

Opposite them Mizu sat next to Mahkado and Geil pulled Delius B into his lap, long dark arms encircling the slender seer around the hips.

"The beginning of course." Zefi said, scratching her friend behind the ears. "Isn't that where everything starts?"

"Of course." The Callestellan said, smiling.

"As far as records show there has always been a group of people who have seen themselves as 'purifiers' and have killed those they have deemed as 'tainted'. Their leader was a terrifying man. Strong, charismatic, handsome, powerful, intelligent, witty, clever, but fierce. He directed his guild with an iron grip, gathering followers from all continents.

Imagine this guild, as hidden as the Order of Secrets, as resilient as the Ebon Vanguard, united as the Imperial Army, devoted as the Kurzicks, adaptable as the Luxons, and as plentiful as the Xunlai.

Their leader's name is unknown, there are no records of what he looked like, his name, age, heritage. Nothing, the only way we know he existed is from written documents from the original members and a few of his disciples.

Their guild symbol is that of Shiro Tagachi's. I believe you'd know him, he is after all the one who currently plagues Cantha, the country from which you recently arrived from." Mahkado paused, receiving conformation from everyone he preceded onward.

"It is said among the Canthans that it is unknown why Shiro turned against the emperor, it is however believed from information gathered by the Order that the leader of this guild ordered Shiro to do it, as well as gave him the power to commit the act and turn to seas to Jade and the trees to stone."

"You mean a human had the ability to transfer that much power?" Pumkin gaped, eyes wide.

"It is unknown if their leader was human…however we do know that the power was stolen, a type of necromancy known as blood magic, the spell is also unknown but at the sacrifice of what is documented as hundreds the power was given to Tagachi." Mahkado said, rubbing a finger to his temple.

"What happened?" Zefiros said, quietly prodding the man along.

"Tagachi was a pupil of their leader, a favorite actually." Mizu said, putting a sympathetic hand on her captain's shoulder. He smiled at her and continued speaking.

"Shortly after writings of the leader faded out, so we assume he died or slipped out of focus. However the guild continues to do horrendous acts, some more horrible than what happened during that time. Five and fifty years ago they where chased out of Elona, by our predecessors, the Hunters. Since then it's been our duty to seek out their traces and destroy them."

"We can't say that we're the most honorable people out there, or that we're the most known. But we're whispered about." Geil said, he pulled one of his greaves off, a deep purplish blue swirl blossoming on the back of his hand spiraled down to mid fore arm. "As you can see, we are all marked for our purpose in this little operation."

"What do they mean? If you don't mind me asking." Zefi said, tilting her head, to see the mark in the various lighting.

"That my love means that he is the Guide of Death." Light suddenly shone in from behind them, they all turned to squint their eyes at the door.

Standing in the doorframe was a tall man with deep brown hair and a ball of fire circling his head and black ancient armor.

"Delius cut the drama, close the door, and get over here so I can kick your sorry ass." Mizu growled, a hand covering her face for the light was shining directly into her hooded eyes.

"Glad to know you missed me too sweet" he grinned, closed the door and strode over to sit in the chair next to his twin. "Hello to myself." He said. The darker of the two raised a brow.

"Hello my stupid, egotistical, chauvinistic, self-absorbed, womanizing twin. Do tell what news has brought you back to us." The pyromancer brought a hand to his chest and pretended to look affronted.

"Why, can I not see my little brothers?" he sent a glance at Geil "and one of said little brother's boy toys?" he added causing the Ritualist to sputter and the dervish to exclaim.

"It's the other way around!"

Pins jumped up and hugged his brother before promptly slamming a fist into his shoulder.

"You never told me about this!" He growled.

"It's none of your business kid." Delius E snarled back in response, rubbing his now probably bruised appendage.

"NONE OF MY! MY _FRIEND_ JUST GOT TAKEN! _AGAIN_!" the assassin yelled, causing everyone's heads to snap to him in attention.

"Again?" Madilim said.

"Uh…"

"What do you mean _again_?" Luna said.

"I mean…uh…never mind, it really _is_ none of my business." He sat down, defeated and pinched the bridge of his nose. "The things I do for that woman…" he mumbled.

Lune stood up and walked over to Pins and grabbed him by the arm, shaking him.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN _AGAIN?"_ he bellowed, surprising everyone at his violent actions.

"What do you think I mean by again? Doesn't again usually mean…again?" Pins said. Orage rolled his eyes.

"You should be a Mesmer with the way you talk in riddles. Answer the damn question." He glared, Pins glared back and sighed.

"It's not my story to tell. I don't think Dawn'd like it if I started telling her story behind her back."

"It's important." Madilim whispered. "We have to know, we have to save her."

"Why?" Pins said, giving everyone a blank look. "Why is it so important that you know?"

"Don't be stupid" Pumkin said from where he sat next to his siblings. Pins turned to look at him. Orage spoke up.

"Isn't it obvious?"

"No, it isn't." Pins pouted.

"Well…" Luna started.

"I think it is." Her twin finished.

"What is?"

"We're your friends dumbass" Zefiros said, flicking a rock at the assassin's head.

"And she's our friend to, so we should know." Zefi added, giving her twin a light whack on the shins for throwing things.

Pins stared at them all again and sighed.

"But it isn't my story."

"So?" Luna said, coming over to pry her twin's hand off of Pins' arm.

"What do you mean 'so'?" He gaped at them. "It means that it's wrong of me to tell it."

"As much as I'm sure she appreciates the privacy you're giving her, I don't think she'll appreciate having to wait for us to save her, Pins." Madilim said, straightening a bit. "So start talking so we can start searching."

He bit his lip.

"Alright…but I don't everything either, what I tell you is all I know."

* * *

Where was she?

"Ugh…" Dawn groaned and attempted to sit up, her limbs jerked. "What the?" She looked down, chains manacled her wrists and ankles tying them to the ground.

"Fuck."

"Watch your mouth little assassin." _No…_

"FUCK YOU!" She screamed and ripped at the chains, attempting to pull herself free.

"I believe you already have, you know that isn't going to work." The voice drew closer; she could _feel_ the bastard's warm breath on her now. "Welcome back Dawn…"

She turned and glared at her assailant, knowing that her fear must have shone through judging by his sadistic smile.

"Hello…uncle."

**

* * *

**

TBC


End file.
